


Blessing

by Lycaon Shadowhunter (TachyonStar)



Series: Y'senia's Plot Antics [7]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: F/M, Full of Feels, Here There Be Spoilers, Thancred is a bloody idiot, the plot expands, where does all the fluff come from
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:47:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24791827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TachyonStar/pseuds/Lycaon%20Shadowhunter
Summary: Some things are discovered in the aftermath of Nabaath Areng.
Relationships: Warrior of Light/Thancred Waters
Series: Y'senia's Plot Antics [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1756690
Kudos: 6





	Blessing

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, finally got a chance to properly use some plot I've held since late ARR/beginning of HW, re: Senia and Thancred's aether.
> 
> Shush, I don't care how self-indulgent it is.
> 
> I will also never be convinced that the Scions _weren't_ betting on Senia and Thancred's love life, and you can just blame the friend who's been poking me to write out all this plot for that. ~~To be fair, I may have helped convince her the same bloody thing happened with her WoL...~~
> 
> Obvious honkin' spoilers for somewhat late in Shadowbringers, but probably no one's gonna read this without having got there, so hey.
> 
> ...Also, fuck Urianger's speech patterns. Just because I'm good at writing them doesn't mean I have to enjoy it. :P

"Ah, there you are," Thancred says as the ahriman carrying me and Minfilia descends to the ground, settling there to let us off. "We were worried."  
  
"Really? She wasn't the one that nearly got herself killed." Blunt as usual, Alisaie shoots him a pointed look, arms folded tightly. "It's a good thing Urianger called on us when he did. You were at death's door when we found you--" another pointed look, this one a slow once-over from head to toe, and something cold settles heavy in the pit of my stomach when I follow her gaze and take in all the blood and dirt - clearly the fight with Ran'jit was not a quick nor an easy one, although I suppose I hadn't exactly been expecting it would be. "Honestly, you've done some exceptionally reckless things in your time, but this might well be the worst of them. What if we hadn't reached you in time? I, for one, would not relish the thought of telling Y'senia what had happened if that were the case - throwing someone into utter despair would _not_ be my idea of an entertaining time. But," she concedes at the wounded look he gives her, "I suppose you've been scolded enough for one day. Just see that you _don't_ do that again."  
  
"Perish the thought." Thancred's reply is stiff, but teasingly so, and that in itself is a bit of a relief - I think I might be _more_ worried were he not attempting his usual dark humour. "But it matters not, now; though I may have been quite firmly planted at the very doorway of mortality, the fact remains that thanks to your timely ministrations, I was not obliged to walk through it. At any rate, there are more important things to focus on at the moment..." he's looking me up and down now, pursing his lips into a frown and shifting over to make room next to him. "Gods, and I thought _I_ looked a sight. Never mind me, are _you_ all right, Y'senia? Mayhap it would be best if you sit down before you fall down - no need to be shy, there's plenty of room over here. Plenty of splinters, too, but I suppose I could shield you from them if you asked nicely."  
  
Appreciating what he's trying to do, even if I don't feel much like laughing at the moment (though sitting on his lap _is_ an appealing thought no matter the circumstance), I nod slowly with a wan smile, rubbing a hand over my face as it starts sinking in just how exhausted I really am. "Mayhap you're right," I agree, let my hand fall back to my side and give my head a careful shake, taking a cautious step forward to see if my legs will still support me enough to make it the few fulms to the steps. "I'm sorry, I'll be fine once I've rested a bit. I just...I..."  
  
Abrupt dizziness swamps me before I can finish speaking; I swallow hard in an instinctive attempt to force it back, and my stomach lurches violently, the nausea sending me to all fours in the dust.  
  
A shocked silence follows the first choked heaves, and then the screaming starts.  
  
" _Y'senia_! No, gods _no_ , this isn't happening--" Alisaie's voice is pure terror made manifest, breathless and shrill, and she's at my side so fast it's almost as if she teleported there, her hands clamped so tight on my shoulders I wouldn't be surprised if I have bruises later. "Urianger, Alphinaud, _hurry_ , help me--" and clearly they're already both prepared to do exactly that, the stark chill of healing magic soon pouring into me into a soothing wave that renders me finally able to actually calm and catch my breath, blurred vision swimming back into focus enough for me to see what all the screaming was about - sinking into the sand in front of me is what looks like nothing so much as a pool of pure prismatic brilliance, desert sunlight refracting off its surface, and suddenly it all makes sense. What we'd seen with Tesleen, the agony and contortions she'd undergone as her transformation was occurring - Alisaie must have been forced to relive it all over again, and I can only hope I look properly apologetic as I tiredly raise my eyes to hers, feeling a sharp pang of remorse as she quickly swipes tears from her cheeks before trying to smile at me. "I - I'm sorry I panicked. Are you all right...?"  
  
"I think so," I manage, a little raspy, wiping my mouth on the back of a shaking hand and not protesting when I'm unceremoniously lifted, Urianger's hold strong and soothing as he carries me over to Thancred - more specifically, to his lap, which I'm equal parts embarrassed and pleased to end up seated in, leaning against him a little when he slips protective arms around me. "I'm not - I wasn't becoming one of them. I just got dizzy, all of a sudden, and...it was a little too much for me, after everything. I'm sorry for scaring you." Not that it exactly explains why I was apparently bringing up everything I ate for the past week in the form of light corruption, but I don't really want to think about that one too hard, to be perfectly honest. "...Never mind that for now, anyway. I'll be fine, there's more important things to focus on right now, like--"  
  
"The fact that your aether," Y'shtola speaks up before I can go on, staring at me with narrowed eyes and tapping her knuckles lightly against her cheek, "is in utter turmoil, you mean?"  
  
"Exactly like - wait, _what_?" Baffled, I lift my head from where it's come to rest against Thancred's shoulder, blinking at her.  
  
Y'shtola smiles grimly, humourlessly, her head tilting to the side just the smallest bit. "Not only yours, but Thancred's as well, I see. The both of you have the exact same disruption, manifesting in the exact same manner...as if something has temporarily severed your aetheric flow. I wonder..." she pauses, eyes going just a little distant in deep thought, and begins pacing, her tail lashing with each step. "Nay, there is no 'wonder' about it - that must be the way of it. Do you remember, Y'senia, when we took Krile to see Master Matoya so that she could trace the trail of Thancred's aether? Do you also remember how a portion of the trail led straight to _you_ , and we deduced this was likely a result of both your aether and his being torn apart at the same instant, only to come back together in an imperfect rejoining? This has just proven that theory - I would posit that when Thancred temporarily cut off his own aetheric flow," and now she's shooting a dagger-eyed glare at him, putting up a finger to silence me when I open my mouth to speak up in utter shock. "The effects of it rebounded onto _you_ , as well. As for why it only affected you now - well, I can only speculate, but..."  
  
"It was her," Minfilia whispers from where she's still stood a few fulms away, sounding both stunned and saddened in equal measure. "She protected us."  
  
Y'shtola nods once, turning to offer her a sympathetic smile. "Just so."  
  
"Wait a moment," I interject before anyone else can say a word, giving my head a hard shake, somewhat privately relieved that it only makes me feel a bit disoriented as opposed to extremely sick. "What do you mean, he temporarily cut off his own aetheric flow? What in the _world_ did we miss? Why wasn't I told of this _sooner_?"  
  
"You were rather occupied revisiting your lunch," Alphinaud points out lightly - a little _too_ lightly, if you ask me, and Alisaie apparently agrees with me, driving a vicious elbow into his ribs and looking not the slightest bit apologetic when he grunts and puts a hand protectively over his side. "In all seriousness, that _is_ the reason - I believe I can speak for all of us when I say there was no malicious intent in keeping it from you until anyone was certain of your coherency. And now that we _are_ certain, well..." he hesitates, gives the elbowed spot an absent rub and glances at Urianger. "Perhaps it's best if someone who understands this a bit better gives you the full explanation. While I'm fairly certain I have the gist of it, I can't speak to whether I would be able to go into specifics without slipping up somewhere. With that in mind, would you do the honours, Urianger? You're the one who figured out the particulars of it, after all."  
  
Urianger's brow wrinkles in obvious displeasure, but he isn't protesting, just lifting his hands in an exasperated shrug and turning to face me and Thancred more fully. "Very well, then. In order to evade the stronger of Ran'jit's attacks, and to deliver ones of his _own_ in return, 'tis apparent that Thancred was forced to sever the very _flow_ of his own aether to conceal himself - a situation, as thou knowest, most untenable for all but the slightest of moments. Not once, not twice, but thrice did he attempt this undertaking, and 'twas the last which nigh ended his life--" a statement he delivers with a curious flatness, giving Thancred a stare which, as hazy as my mind still is, I can't even begin to comprehend the emotion of. "Prithee ask _him_ for the whole of it later; there may yet be more I hath not become privy to, best told in privacy to thine ears alone. However, that is the bulk of it, as far as I am given to understand."  
  
I blink slowly for a moment, parsing all of that, then tilt my head enough to look up at Thancred, lips pursing into a most petulant frown. "Have I ever told you that you're a bloody _idiot_?"  
  
"Not recently," Thancred mutters, looking uncomfortable, not meeting my gaze.  
  
" _Look_ at me - and stop pouting. You're a bloody idiot." It makes me a little dizzy to move so quickly, but I twist around enough that I can sit up straight, bringing my hands up to cup either side of Thancred's face firmly, forcing him to meet my eyes and not letting him turn away again. "...I understand why you did it. As much as I want to, I can't be angry with you for _that_. But...if I were to lose you, then I..." pausing to take a slow breath, I shake my head just a little, letting my voice soften. "I'm not even angry about what it did to _me_. I just - please don't do that again. Please don't _ever_ be that reckless again. You remember what you told me after we fought Fordola, don't you? 'I haven't the slightest clue what I'll do, but rest assured, it will _not_ be pretty' - that's exactly how I feel right now. So...please promise me you won't do that again. _Ever_."  
  
Thancred sighs, squirms in obvious annoyance, and briefly flicks his eyes to the side, but after a moment he lets his gaze return squarely to mine, something in his expression softening just a little. "...All right, I won't. I promise. And I'm sorry," he says the last part quietly, low enough that I'm probably the only one who can hear the thick regret lacing his words, and I can't help but feel a stab of guilt at that. "If I had known it would affect _you_ as well - gods, if only I had known..." his voice breaks slightly, and he brings his hands up to cover mine, a gesture as much meant to soothe as it is to _be_ soothed in return, leaning in so our foreheads rest gently together. "I can't apologise enough. I simply can't. But if you can find it in you to forgive me..."  
  
"Of _course_ I forgive you," I retort, as firmly as I can, never mind that my own voice is breaking now. "Don't start with the pity spiral, I _will_ outdo you and it won't be pretty either--"  
  
He snorts a shocked laugh, clearly surprising himself from the way his shoulders twitch, and then he's letting his hands drop to put his arms around me instead, pulling me against him for a completely unexpected kiss.  
  
Warmth immediately blooms within my chest, bringing with it the feeling that something has been screaming inside of me this whole time and has finally fallen silent, and it's such a relief that I nearly sob outright, clinging to him with a raw desperation that I don't even realise - at least not until Alisaie clears her throat pointedly, and the both of us jerk back from one another at the same instant, embarrassment setting in at what we've just done. "As glad as we all are that you're both feeling better, perhaps now is _not_ the time or the place for this?" she suggests with a wry amusement in her tone, elbowing Alphinaud again when he draws breath to make a comment. "I would hear of what you have done, Y'senia, now that we've established Thancred's foolishness several times over. You meant to meet with the Oracle - shall we assume you were successful?"  
  
"We were," I agree, turning my head to look at Minfilia. "But that's not a question you want to put to me - put it to her, instead."  
  
Minfilia looks a little startled, especially when everyone looks at her and registers surprise at her appearance, but she quickly recovers, smiling a little nervously and clasping her hands behind her back. "I know I haven't exactly been pulling my weight up till now, but that's all going to change, starting today," she begins, and I can't help but feel a little pride at the resolve in her voice. "I'll do whatever it takes - whatever it takes to make Minfilia's dream a reality. I can track the Lightwardens now..." she brings a hand up to her chest, bowing her head a little, eyes briefly closing. "Maybe even help you fight them. I will make up for every time I've only held you back, or dragged you down...it's the least I can do, for all of you, and for her."  
  
Thancred simply looks at her for a moment, then he's shifting me out of his lap with a murmured apology, getting to his feet and moving to stand before her with an unreadable gaze - sizing her up, almost, as if he's trying to see just how deep the changes run, finally nodding slowly once. "I'm glad you're back," he says, quiet, maybe a little uncertain. "And that you're safe."  
  
Startling a little, Minfilia raises her head enough to look at him, then lowers it again, biting her lip. "You don't have to say that, you know..."  
  
"But I want to," Thancred insists, and he's reaching out to settle a gentle hand atop her head, giving her a smile that's just a little bit forlorn. "You're family. How else would I feel?"  
  
I can't help but smile a little myself, now, feeling a pang of something warm and sympathetic when Minfilia dissolves into helpless, relieved tears; I know how she feels, to an extent, and since I've been there too, it all gives me hope that maybe things are _finally_ going to be okay.  
  
"She will need a name," Y'shtola says abruptly after a few moments, her head tilted, her hand resting thoughtfully against her cheek. "A name of her own - I would not have her walk in the shadow of another any longer, and I think it a fitting tribute to our departed friend too. At the mention of Minfilia, I would remember the woman who preserved our fellowship when all seemed lost. Surely I am not the only one?"  
  
Everyone exchanges glances, silent agreement, and it's Alisaie who speaks next, addressing Minfilia. "Do you remember what you were called before you were taken to Eulmore?"  
  
"I'm sorry, I don't," Minfilia admits, drying her eyes and looking down a bit. "I can't have been very old when it happened."  
  
"Then we think of a new name," I say before I even realise I'm going to speak, reddening a little when I suddenly have everyone's eyes on me, but going on nonetheless. "Or I should say...Thancred ought to be the one to think of it. He's the one who's been guiding her along all this time, who's become the family she never had - I would think it only appropriate. Unless anyone has any objections?"  
  
Thancred fidgets, looking between us all as if he does expect someone to object, but when no one does, he seems to relax a little bit, expression going distantly thoughtful. "Well then, what about...Ryne, perhaps? What do you think of that?"  
  
"Ah," Urianger murmurs, a hand going thoughtfully to his chin. "Blessing, in Fae...quite appropriate, in my opinion--" and then he pauses, eyes widening, something excited coming into his gaze as he jerks his head upright to look at Thancred. "Wait! Doth this mean thou wert _listening_ when I delivered my lectures on the pixies?"  
  
Going just the slightest bit red, Thancred waves a hand dismissively, though his shoulders do hunch a little at the stifled snickers Alisaie and Y'shtola aren't trying very hard not to let slip. "Not exactly, but that one word made an impression. At any rate, how about it? If it's not to your liking, I can think of something else," the last part, of course, directed at Minfilia. "It was just...the first thing to come to mind."  
  
Minfilia considers it, looking as if she's turning the decision over and over in her mind, finally giving a slow nod. "Ryne," she repeats, and smiles a little, clearly pleased. "Yes, I rather like the sound of it. Thank you."  
  
Thancred exhales a sigh of relief, giving a smile of his own, the set of his shoulders relaxing subtly. "That settles it, then! Welcome aboard, Ryne."  
  
"I won't let you down," Minfilia - Ryne - promises, takes a deep breath and squares her shoulders, looking around at all of us. "Thank you all. I'll do my best."  
  
Getting to my feet, I offer her a smile as well, taking a few cautious steps to make sure I'm truly recovered and nodding satisfaction when my legs remain steady. "You'll be just fine. And with your help, I think we have a chance...a chance to finally end this all, to bring back the night this world has lost, and the hope that's gone with it." A brief stretch, and I join her and Thancred, reaching out to put a hand on her shoulder and give it a reassuring squeeze. "We're counting on you, Ryne. Let's end this as soon as we can - with you along, I know we can do it."  
  
Looking rather surprised, Ryne blinks at me for a moment, then smiles shyly and ducks her head a little. "I - thank you, Senia," she says softly, reaches up to put her hand over mine for a moment, then raises her head again, looking inquisitively between me and Thancred. "By the way, I meant to ask - I'm so sorry if this is rude, but you two...are you, well, you know..."  
  
"Together?" Y'shtola speaks up before either of us can, and she's wearing a sly smile that sends nervous chills down my spine. "Oh, they _certainly_ are. Whether they admit it or not, that is an entirely different matter - but they have been absolutely head over heels for one another nearly since they _met_. For a while some of us had a bet going, to be perfectly honest with you, as to when they would finally--"  
  
"Do not," Thancred interrupts her, sounding a little panicked, "absolutely _do not_ finish that sentence--"  
  
"Hm? And whyever not?" Appropriately, Y'shtola's smile is now downright feline. "Is there aught wrong with wondering when you two would first share a kiss? Or did you think I meant something more...private? My, Thancred. Thinking of such things at a time like this - you ought to be a bit ashamed of yourself."  
  
Thancred sputters a few times, looking like he's just had a bucket of ice water dumped over his head, and even though I know exactly how he feels...somehow, I just can't keep myself from bursting out laughing, filled with a warm relief at the thought that maybe now, everything is going to be all right. The tension is gone, we've finally made it past all the worries and helplessness at long last. We'll be just fine...  
  
Besides, his scandalised expression at my reaction just makes me laugh even harder, and soon _he's_ laughing a little too, and everything just feels _right_ in a way I thought I'd never again experience.  
  
Now I'm sure, absolutely sure, we'll overcome whatever lies before us.


End file.
